Retired from the University of Texas and too old to play soccer anymore. Now, in the twilight of his years, time is spent writing in this blog, hiking and exploring Texas Parks, photography, working out, gardening and tending to the five ponds he built .

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Yesterday’s Game-Wait Until Next Time

My little boys team had a game today
They were all pumped and ready to play
Against a team we had scrimmaged earlier in the season
Twice in fact and both times we lost, for no reason
other than their team played better
and had more skills than we could muster.

So, we went to the game with hope in our hearts
Ready to believe we could assemble the parts
That had been missing in our earlier encounters
and ready to play them with skill we had learned
from our coach in the month since the last time we played them.

The first half we played and we scored first
We thought that we could add to the list
but just before the half time whistle was sounded
they broke through our defence and the ball rebounded
into our goal, for them to tie
at one one the score and so did we end the first half with my
telling them, “Well done boys. Wait for next half, we will go at them strong,
and maybe we can carry them along as we score more goals to show them that
have learned a lot since the first time we met”.

The second half started and it became clear
that the other team had very little fear
and that no more this day
would we score any goals against them this way

The other team pressed hard and had many shots
but they had not reckoned with Jack who made a lot
of saves to keep them at bay for Jack was the games MVP.

Alas, the pressure became too great,
the boys lost their passing game and their shape
forgot how to clear and bunched up together
and finally the other team increased the pressure
until two more goals they scored this day
sending us home in such a way
that we felt we had really been beaten by
a team better and stronger and all we could say is
“Wait until next time” and you will see
that we will improve and we will be
more of a match for you when we play
again and on a different day.

The wonderful thing of this little boys team
They are not yet old enough to have a dream
of going unbeaten or better yet
win every game in such a way
that other teams fear them in play

No, my little boys have more of a care
with what goodies are in the chest over there.
the chest is filled with good wholesome fare
that one of the Parents has carefully placed there
and the Coach making them run and wave
at the Parents with whom they always behave

Is it to say,”Thank You” or better yet
make sure that they do not forget
to take us home with them as they say
“You are all through playing today”.

By the time they get home, this game is forgot
It’s not that they don’t care a jot
as they go home with Parents, who worry a lot
who make little boys feel like Kings
who worry about more important things
than a game that after all, is just for fun
and anyway, Tuesday is training and we’ll shoot on goal
before the Coach makes us run.